Oil burner



J. GOOD OIL BURNER Jan 6, 1931.

Filed Aug. 12. 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Jan 6, 1931. J, @00D 1,787,743

OIL BURNER Filed Aug. 12,*1926 2 Sheewlzs-Sheet,- 2

*f/rlliml f I 1; up? w Illll Ill INVENTOR Patented Jan. 6, 1931 UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE JOHN GOOD, OF GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TOGOOD INVENTIONS CO., F

' NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK OIL BURNER Application ledAugust 12, 1928. Serial No. 128,756.`

The invention has reference to oil burners, more particularly, of thetype commonly used in house heating furnaces, although useful elsewhere,and its object is to improve and simplify the means for controlling theintroduction of fuel into the combustion chamber to the end of avoidingexplosive conditions therein; The invention relates generally to thetype of burner disclosed in a previous applicatiomnow Patent No.1,723,031, patented Aug. 6, 1929, and includes certain improvements inthe fuel supply arrangements shown in that patent and also contemplatesthe employment of pneumatic means for establishing the desired sequenceand control of the fuel-feeding and ignition periods, such means beingparticularly suited for use in conjunction with the said fuel supplyarrangements although not essential thereto.

In the accompanying drawing, Fig. 1 is a longitudinal vertical sectionof a burner structure constructed generally along conventional lines buthaving the present invention incorporated in it, parts of the mechanismbeing shown in elevation.

Figs. 2 and 3 are larger scale details of the two-rate spray mechanism;

Fig. 4 an enlarged section of the pneumatic control mechanism, and

Fig. 5 is a plan of the same. The burner comprises a fire pot 1supported inside the combustion space of a house heat- `ing furnace, orotherwise related to the thing to be heated, and connected with an airconduit 2, extending outside the furnace and containing or supportingthe control and operating mechanism. The latter includes an electricmotor 3 driving a blower 4, which delivers air through an opening` inthe top of the airrcasing 2 and thence to the lire pot and furnace. Themotor also drives a small air pump 5, the function of which is todeliver air at a higher pressure through the pipe 6 to the air receiver7, and thence by the mech'- anism presently to be described to thesprayer mechanism. The suction side of the air pump v5 is connected by apipe 8 to a so-called vacuum feed tank 9, which is a llocal gravitysupply for liquid fuel, and draws fuel into .'10 it from a. remote tank,not shown, through a pipe 10 provided with' a check valve 11. Theelectric motor 3, in the present case, also drives a small electricgenerator 12, which furnishes the current for igniting the fuel in theburner, but this generator may be omitted andV other means of ignitionused in its place.

The control of the fuel supply to the burn'- er proper or fuel spraydevice, and of the ignition current, is accomplished by a pneumatictiming chamber 30 mounted inside of the air conduit 2 and preferably ona tray 2 therein which can be withdrawn from the end of the conduit,like a drawer, for inspection. The tray also carries the spray head 13mounted thereon in aposition to discharge through an appropriate openinginto the lireY the low rate of fuel supply and both acting togetherfurnish the full or normal fuel sup. ply, representing maximumcombustion of which the apparatus is capable.

Fuel is delivered from the local tank 9 through pipe 21, shut-off valve22, and oil pipe 23, to a fuel entrance valve'24 contained in the lowerpart of the oil reservoir 25 of the pneumatic timing device. Theconstruction of this valve will be clear from Fig. 4 withoutdescription; it opens downwardly against a spring, and when open allowsthe oil to flow upwardly through the convolutions of the spring into thereservoir 25. The valve is opened by pressure exerted on it through aflexible diaphragm 26, which latter -is arranged to be bulged downwardlyby a push rod 27 actuated by the plunger 28 of a motor device ormetallic bellows 29, the latter being essentially a piston membermounted in an air chamber 30 and subject to air pressure on its exteriorwhich collapses it against the pressure of spring 28a and thereby opensthe oil valve. The crank arm 31 which intervenes between the pneumaticplunger 28 and t-lie push rod 27 is mounted on a rock shaft 32,extending outside the casing, Where it carries an electric grounding arm33 (Fig. 1). The pneumatic operation of plunger 28 rocks this a rm intocontact with the insulated terminal 34 (Fig. 5) of a branch'35 of theignition circuit, which latter extends from the generator to theignition device or spark plug 36 of the spray mechanism, therebygrounding the plug and rendering it inactive for so long as thepneumatic plunger 28 is depressed. The end of the grounding arm 33 isprovided with a spring yielding contact element so that it does notinterfere with the movement of the pneumatic plunger.

When the electric motor 3 isset in action after a period of rest, highpressure air from the pipe 6 and air receiver 7 is transmitted throughpipe 37 and T-itting 38 through a restricted orifice 39 (Fig. 4) intothe air chamber 30, where it gradually builds up an air pressuresufiicient to cause the plunger 28 to operate the grounding arm and thenopen the fuel entrance valve 24. This may require a minute or moreaccording to the size of restriction 39. The high pressure air passes atthe same time, from the T through pipe 16 to the air jet 15 of thesprayer mechanism above described. On the starting of the apparatus, theoil level in reservoir 25 is about as indicated in Fig. 4, below thelevel of pipe 20, so that the air jet 15 discharges oil only through thelow rate pipe 18 and oil jet 19. The resulting small spray is ignited bythe spark plug 36. producing a relatively small flame in the fire pot.This iiame however is supplied with the normal or full volume vof airfrom the air blower 4, and this is much in excess of its combustionrequirements but is desirable for the purposes of safety inasmuch as itthereby becomes impossible for an explosive mixture to be produced.which, if ignited, might do injury.

While this small, or low rate flame is burning in the fire pot, airpressure is building up in the slow-filling timing chamber 30, graduallydepressing the pneumatic plunger 28, rocking the grounding arm 33 anddepressing the push rod 27, and in the course of a few moments, thegrounding arm 33 reaches its contact terminal and thereby deenergizesthe igniter. Shortly thereafter the push rod 27 opens the fuel valve 24,whereupon the reservoir 25 fills with fuel up to or above the level ofthe connection of the larger fuel pipe 2O and the high rate fueldelivery thereupon begins. That is to say, fuel is now delivered to thespray mechanism through both pipes 18 and 20 and the resulting flame isat once enlarged to its normal proportions, the igniter being no longeractive, and having been discontinued before the full fuel rate came on.This full rate supply obviously obtains for as long as the air pressureis maintained on the pneumatic diaphragm, to

hold the oil valve open, which is to say, as y the air pressure dies olfin the chamber 30,

and the' fuel entrance valve 24 closes, the grounding arm 33 returningto its open or inactive position, ready for the next startmg.

On each shut-downa residual portion of v fuel is left in the reservoir25, as above pointed out, to serve as the supply for the initial lowrate burning on the next operation. This supply is large enough toaccommodate the lag period produced by the restricted admission of airto the pneumatic chamber 30, and the lag period is long enough to insurea proper temperature in the fire pot for the starting of the normalcombustion when the fuel valve 24 is opened. Inasmuch as the igniter isalways cut out before the full rate burning occurs and cannot be madeactive while the full rate is in action, the danger of ignition of anysubstantial volume of explosive mixture in the fire pot is reduced to aminimum.

Having now described my invention, I claim:

1. In an oil burner, the combination of a combustion chamber having anigniter, motor operated means forV effecting a preliminary fuel deliveryfor ignition purposes, and a subsequent main delivery to said chamberincluding a fuel valve and a slow-filling air chamber for cont-rollingthe main delivery, means directly responsive to the pressure in saidchamber and operating to open said valve on the attainment of apredetermined pressure, and means for rendering the igniter inactiveprior to said subsequent main delivery.

2. In an oil burner, the combination of a combustion chamber having anigniter, motor-operated means for effecting a preliminary fuel deliveryfor ignition purposes and a subsequent main delivery to said chamber,said means including a pneumatic piston member, a diaphragm operated bysaid piston member and a fuel valve for said main delivery controlled bysaid diaphragm, and means responsive to the operation of said pistonmember for rendering the igniter inactive.

3. In an oil burner, the combination of a combustion chamber having anigniter, a motor-operated means for furnishing air and fuel to saidchamber, said means i11-l cluding a fuel valve and a pneumaticallyoperated piston member which successively de-energizes said igniter andopens said valve.

4. In an oil burner, a motor, means operated thereby for furnishing fueland air to the combustion space, said means comprising a reservoirhaving outlets at diiferent levels, spray mechanism connected to bothoutlets,

and pneumatic timing means for controlling the oil level in saidreservoir and the delivery of fuel through one of said outlets.

5. In an oil burner, a motor, means operated thereby for furnishing fueland air to the combustion space, said means comprising a reservoirhaving outlets at diiferent levels, fuel discharge mechanism connectedtoboth outlets, and pneumatic means controlling the time of delivery offuel into said reservoir.

6. In an oil burner, the combination of a combustion chamber having anigniter, and a two-rate fuel discharging mechanism, a motor, and meansoperated thereby for furnishing air and fuel to said chamber, said meansincluding a pneumatic piston member which successively de-energizes theigniter and starts the full rate fuel discharge.

7. In an oil burner, an igniter, a motor, air supply means operatedthereby for effecting a preliminary fuel delivery to a place ofcombustion for ignition, a main fuel supply means and a pneumatic timingdevice operated by said air supply means for controlling the main fuelsupply and the igniter.

8. In an oil burner, air delivery means, means for effecting apreliminary fuel delivery to a place of combustion for ignition purposesand a subsequent main delivery, including pneumatic means operated bysaid air delivery means and adapted to interpose a delay between theinitiations of the two deliveries, an igniter and means for renderingthe same inactive coincidently with the initiation of said maindelivery.

9. Oil burning apparatus comprising means for supplying a constant airHow suited for normal combustion, a two-rate spray nozzle adapted todeliver fuel into said air flow and pneumatic means for causing saidsprayer to deliver fuel for a predetermined period at a rate below thatrequired to produce an eX- plosive mixture in the place of combustionand Subsequently at a higher rate substantially in accordance withcombustion requirements.

lO. Oil burning apparatus comprising means for supplying a constant airHow suited for normal combustion, a two-rate spray nozzle adapted todeliver fuel into said air flow, and means for causing said sprayer todeliver fuel initially at a rate below that required to produce anexplosive mixture in the place of combustion and subsequently at ahigher rate substantially in accordance with combustion requirements.

11. In an oil burner, the combination of a combustion chamber and anigniter, oil delivery means includin two supply passages togethersupplying su cient oil for the normal requirements of the burner, meanswhereby one of said passages is rendered active. to supply oil when theoperation of the. apparatus is initiated and means for subsequentlyrendering the igniter inactive and said other passage active. y

12. In an oil burner the combination set forth in the preceding claimincluding a valve controlling the oil flow through said other passage,valve opening means and means for delaying the activity of the latter.

13. Oil burning apparatus comprising means for continuously deliveringoil to a place of combustion, means 'for delivering thereto a quantityof air suliciently in excess of the combustion requirements of said oil.to produce a non-explosive mixture, means for effecting the delivery ofadditional oil to conform the mixture proportions to normal combustionrequirements, means for delaying the operation of the latter, an igniterand means for rendering the igniter inactive prior to said additionaloil delivery.

In testimony whereof, I have signed this specification.

JOHN GOOD.

